Shoulder pain derails Prior

CUBS | Righty's comeback trail may have hit end of the line; Is Wood next?

Former pitching ace Mark Prior, already demoted to Class AAA Iowa two weeks ago for poor performance this spring, left the mound Thursday morning with shoulder pain and is scheduled to be examined today by Los Angeles-based orthopedic surgeon Lewis Yocum, the team said.

And Kerry Wood, whose comeback from a shoulder setback three weeks ago has not progressed well, could be next, a team source said.

Wood is expected to have his damaged shoulder re-examined, possibly by Cincinnati surgeon Timothy Kremchek, who performed Wood's shoulder surgery in August 2005, the source said. Wood has not been able to throw from a mound since recurring pain in his shoulder ended his bid to earn a bullpen job this spring after only five one-inning appearances.

Cubs officials, including general manager Jim Hendry, declined to comment on the status of the pair once considered among the top starting pitching tandems in the majors. But with the latest double dose of injury news, the chances that either takes the mound again for the Cubs have gone from dim to grim -- and neither has turned 30.

Prior's long-term status with the team already was uncertain before the injury, which team officials said surfaced without warning. Despite the fact he was forced to open the season on the minor-league disabled list with ''shoulder fatigue'' because he wasn't stretched out enough to start for Iowa, Prior had insisted throughout spring training that he felt fully healthy for the first time in years.

Wood, too, opened camp in great shape, and unlike Prior, he looked sharp with good velocity until the last of his five one-inning appearances.

Both have one-year, incentive-laden contracts for 2007. Prior is making $3.575 million guaranteed; Wood, $1.75 million.

Prior's timetable for returning to the Iowa Cubs, much less the Chicago version, appeared lengthy even before Thursday.

''I'm more concerned about him now,'' minor-league director Oneri Fleita said. ''I could care less about a calendar. He's a special person.''

Prior's agent, John Boggs, did not immediately return a message left for him Thursday.

Prior, the No. 2 overall draft pick in 2001, won 18 games in 2003 before a variety of injuries derailed the last three seasons. He dealt with shoulder injuries last season that twice put him on the DL, and he went 1-6 with a 7.21 ERA in nine starts.

An examination last fall by Birmingham, Ala., surgeon James Andrews showed no structural problems with Prior's shoulder beyond ''genetic looseness,'' according to the team. And despite nine career trips to the DL, none of those injuries involved surgery.

Prior was scheduled to pitch three innings Thursday in his first extended spring training start -- his first work in a game since March 28 -- but he lasted only two innings before reporting the pain.

He threw a lengthy bullpen session Monday without incident as he prepared for Thursday's start.

After the Cubs announced near the end of camp that Wade Miller had beaten out Prior for the fifth-starter job and that Prior would open in the minors, Prior said he felt he was close to being ready for the Cubs' rotation.

''Yeah, I feel good. I think I'm ready,'' said Prior, who went 0-2 with a 6.97 ERA in four Cactus League games, walking nine and striking out six in 10 1/3 innings. He showed improvement in his final two games, including his final, three-inning start March 28.